Anapakaya / Sorakaya Pulusu (Bottle gourd curry in tamarind sauce)

Ingredients:

1 medium sized bottle gourd (peeled and cubed)
1 medium onion chopped
2 green chillies slit
2 small garlic pods (slightly crushed)
Small lemon sized tamarind (if using tamarind concentrate use 1 tsp)
pinch of turmeric
1 tsp red chilli pwd (adjust)
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp mustard seeds
2 dry red chillies
pinch of fenugreek seeds
5-6 curry leaves
small piece jaggery or 1 tsp sugar
salt to taste
1 tbsp oil
Cilantro to garnish


Process:

• Peel the skin of bottle gourd and cut it into cubes and keep them aside.
• Soak tamarind in water for 10 mins and squeeze the juice or alternately you can microwave the tamarind with water for 2 mins and squeeze the juice once it is cooled.
• Heat oil and add the red chillies and fry till they turn a little dark.
• Then add the crushed garlic, mustard seeds, cumin seeds and fry for 30 secs.
• Add the fenugreek seeds and curry leaves and fry for 30 secs (make sure not to burn the fenugreek seeds. If you burn them the curry will turn bitter)
• Add the chopped onions and green chillies and fry till the onion turn translucent.
• Add the bottle gourd pieces along with salt and turmeric pwd.
• Cover and cook for 10-15 mins or till the bottle gourd pieces are 3/4th cooked.
• Then add the tamarind extract alond with red chilli pwd, jaggery/sugar and a cup of water.
• Cover and cook for another 10 mins on medium flame.
• Adjust salt and switch off the flame.
• Garnish with cilantro.
• Serve hot with rice.

Happy Tummy :-)